Pediatric Hematology/Oncology strives to provide the very best in patient care, teaching, and clinical research for children with cancer and blood disorders. There are several specific areas of focus within our section:

Childhood Malignancies
We have the only childhood cancer treatment center in the state and provide state of the art care to our patients. Approximately 100 new patients are diagnosed each year in our center, and we provide care to over 90% of the children from Arkansas who have cancer. We are an NCI-funded center within the Children’s Oncology Group, and our patients participate in national clinical trials which provide the latest cutting edge treatment programs. Within our oncology program, we have specialized areas of interest in Bone Tumors/Sarcomas, working closely with our orthopedic oncology surgeon, and in Brain Tumors, working closely with our pediatric neurosurgeons. We have a strong, ongoing relationship with UAMS Radiology, where our patients who require radiation therapy are treated by a pediatric radiation oncologist.

Sickle Cell Diseases/Hemoglobinopathies
We provide comprehensive care to over 300 patients with sickle cell diseases or other hemoglobinopathies, offering a weekly comprehensive clinic, and ongoing outpatient and inpatient management. We have been part of the statewide newborn screening program for over 20 years, providing confirmation and early intervention to patients identified through that program. We also provide aggressive intervention and management for children with sickle cell disease who suffer a stroke, by maintaining safe levels of non-sickle hemoglobin via our Apheresis Program, with monthly erytrocytopheresis treatments which help prevent further strokes and also minimize or prevent iron overload.

Consultation Service
We provide outpatient and inpatient consultation to referring physicians throughout the state for children with any type of benign hematologic disorder or suspected malignancy. We have a dedicated, daily clinic and can provide appointments usually within a week of referral, and same day or next day visits as needed.

Support Services and Education
The management of complex chronic diseases such as childhood cancer, sickle cell disease, and hemophilia requires extensive support and education for patients and families. We are committed to providing these services for our patients and have an experienced and dedicated staff of specialty nurse practitioners, advanced practice nurses, program coordinators, and pediatric social workers.